Indeed, poverty is infinitely complex and there are no convenient singularities. The project of Poverty, Inc. is embrace that complexity and eschew silver bullets. “It’s easy to have a heart for the poor,” says development expert Michael Fairbanks in the film. “But can we have a mind for the poor? That’s the challenge.”

“When I see the country heads drive around in their posh cars and living in their big houses,” echoes Ghanaian software entrepreneur Herman Chinery-Hesse in Poverty, Inc., “I see multiple colonial governors. We are held captive by the donor community.”